THE REALIST
Now What?!? S M A RT F I X E S F O R L I F E ’ S L I T T L E D I S A ST E R S By Liz Steelman
The clasp on my favorite necklace broke.
There are gnats swarming around my indoor plant.
V.A ., VIA EMAIL
42 REAL SIMPLE APRIL 2018
E.H., VIA EMAIL
I have a foot cramp! W.B., VIA EMAIL THE FIX: If you’re lying down or sitting, stand up. Putting pressure on the cramp will stop the muscle spasm, says James R. Christina, DPM, executive director of the American Podiatric Medical Association. If you’re standing, walk around to stretch out your lower calves. If walking doesn’t help, lie on the floor, roll up a towel (or grab a yoga strap), and place it under the ball of your foot. Pull your toes toward you, keeping your knee as straight as you can, for a deep stretch. Almost 90 percent of foot cramps are due to muscle fatigue, says Christina, so always stretch your lower body after exercise.
THE FIX: Ease up on watering and move the plant to a sunny spot in your home where the soil can dry out. Often gnats appear when soil has been wet for too long, so also make sure your plant has good drainage. “Gnats have no affinity for plants— just fungi and moisture,” says Christopher Satch, an in-house plant scientist at The Sill, a garden center in New York City. Gnats are mostly just annoying, but a swarm of them may indicate larvae, which can damage the roots and harm a young plant. If drying out the soil doesn’t help, Satch recommends adding diatomaceous earth, a natural, nontoxic, talclike insecticide made from plankton fossils (try DiatomaceousEarth Food Grade Powder, $11 for 2 lb.; chewy .com). Work it into the top inch of soil, then sprinkle some more on the surface.
D YA D P H O T O G R A P H Y ; P R O P S T Y L I N G B Y S A B R I N A G R A N D E
THE FIX: Slide a paper clip or a small safety pin through both ends of the chain and close it, says Rachel Pfeffer, a jewelry designer based in Washington, D.C. For a long-term solution, she explains, you’ll need two pairs of flat-nosed pliers and a new clasp with a round connection piece called a jump ring. (You can find these at craft or bead stores.) To remove the old clasp, grab each side of the existing jump ring with the pliers, then pull one side toward you and push the other side away from you. Once the ring is open, slide off the broken clasp. Then open the replacement jump ring using the same method as above and link it to the end of the chain. Close the ring with pliers to securely install the clasp. Need to repair a family heirloom? Take it to a pro.
